Love from the VIVA! Italy-Greece

[SullytheBFG]

The British Foreign Office has just changed to terrorist attacks highly likely in Turkey. IF we get into port we are staying onboard!

[SullytheBFG]

Are restaurant’s available to book when you get onboard (speciality) as we have a couple we could not book. We are on board in three days, have placed a cheeky bid for a room with spa access have not been told no or yes yet.

 

very excited for new ship and your posts are excellent!

[Lvbhappy]

12 hours ago, SullytheBFG said:

Are restaurant’s available to book when you get onboard (speciality) as we have a couple we could not book. We are on board in three days, have placed a cheeky bid for a room with spa access have not been told no or yes yet.

 

very excited for new ship and your posts are excellent!

Yes they are. As soon as you get on board you can go to deck 6 and book dinner and entertainment. 

[sun_lovin!1]

On 10/25/2023 at 7:10 AM, Lvbhappy said:

Random food buffet and seaside cafe pics!

 

Did you find the pizza in the buffet?  I am going to be traveling with a pizza lover but already have Cagney's booked for our specialty restaurant.

[mapleleaves]

22 hours ago, Lvbhappy said:

It was 20€ per person. Loved it. 

 

How did you know that the pax ferry was an option?

It's a long walk down the hill at Oia so you must have known you could get a ride.

It has been a one-way ride for years.  Maybe because it's off-season?

 

BTW, thx for the trip report !

[Lvbhappy]

31 minutes ago, mapleleaves said:

 

How did you know that the pax ferry was an option?

It's a long walk down the hill at Oia so you must have known you could get a ride.

It has been a one-way ride for years.  Maybe because it's off-season?

 

BTW, thx for the trip report !

We just got lucky. Our plan was to hoof it back up the stairs, and take an Uber or taxi from the top. We had 3h left once we got down the stairs. On the way down I started wondering if a water taxi would be available because it would be fun! Talked to the guy at the bottom and 10min later had it booked!

[Lvbhappy]

1 hour ago, sun_lovin!1 said:

 

Did you find the pizza in the buffet?  I am going to be traveling with a pizza lover but already have Cagney's booked for our specialty restaurant.

Pizza daily in the buffet! Usually at least cheese and pepperoni and then one or two specialities. 
 

if you missed it, my post from the day we ate at onda, we had an AMAZING pizza there. Little knotted crust with cheese and a spicy bite inside. 
 

And in fira, we ate at a rooftop restaurant that had gyro pizza!! Ask for a side of tzatziki sauce. 

 

Edited October 26, 2023 by Lvbhappy
Double

[mapleleaves]

1 hour ago, Lvbhappy said:

We just got lucky. Our plan was to hoof it back up the stairs, and take an Uber or taxi from the top. We had 3h left once we got down the stairs. On the way down I started wondering if a water taxi would be available because it would be fun! Talked to the guy at the bottom and 10min later had it booked!

Oh, so it wasn't the big pax ferry that carries 75 or so people.  It was more like a small private boat ?

[cruiseny4life]

On 10/25/2023 at 10:07 AM, Lvbhappy said:

Definitely different! They had staples like the Big Mac, chicken nuggets, and fries. But at least half the menu is turkey specific. I got a picture of some of it! There’s a lamb one and I don’t know what the daba daba is but it was there. 
 

We drove right by one on our wine tour in Italy, and that’s what got me thinking about it—they had things like pistachio crossiants! 

Thank you for posting! Interesting to see their different offerings. 🙂 That pistachio croissant might actually be good.

 

[SullytheBFG]

One last question do you need to do a physical muster now? I.e go to a particular place?

 

when I checked in online we had to watch a video each, is that it?

 

 

[Lvbhappy]

2 hours ago, mapleleaves said:

Oh, so it wasn't the big pax ferry that carries 75 or so people.  It was more like a small private boat ?

It said taxi on the top. But in my opinion, max would be 20 ppl

[Lvbhappy]

Istanbul!

 

I have to admit, I was not looking forward to the turkey parts of the stops and I feel like this was warranted. Happily would have never set foot in this port and didn’t feel like I would have been missing anything. 
 

we got off the ship and ate in the little touristy area. Finally decided we’d go see the grand bazaar, felt like itd be safe enough, didn’t look like it was that far away. Ordered an Uber. Says it’s a yellow taxi but an Uber. Okay. 70-90 lira or $4-5 usd. We fend off other taxis and get into ours. He pulls out and then kind off pulls off saying something. We don’t understand so he asks for my phone. I say sure. He canceled the Uber ride and says 20€. 
 

the heck are we going to do. Say okay. 
 

ride the 30-35min ride, terrible and scary traffic, and get there and i hand him my card. He said cash only. I said that’s why I booked the UBER, so I could use card. Demands cash. I end up giving him $20 usd and 6€ coins. I’m livid. Still have to walk 8min to the bazaar. 
 

underwhelmed by the whole experience, and to be honest, want nothing to do with turkey in the future. We looked at google maps and opted to walk 2 miles back versus interact with any more Turkish transportation. It was faster than the Uber/taxi. There are some pretty things and sailing away the city looked beautiful in instanbul but on the whole my impression of turkey has been : aggressive sales, dishonest transport, and unsure safety. Honestly wish we’d just spent an extra night in Santorini. 
 

Caveat: this is just my opinion. Others may have a different experience and that’s great. There is a lot of history here, beautiful landmarks, but I didn’t want to pay hundreds usd excursions to go through ncl, and I didn’t feel remotely safe going through outside vendors. 

[Coffeeluvr05]

On 10/19/2023 at 5:46 AM, Lvbhappy said:

Currently on board, setting sail for a 9 day cruise. I’ll try to post things daily in this thread as we were super curious before getting on board, but I’m not a seasoned reviewer/poster like some I’ve seen, but I’ll do my best!
 

it poured today so we were water logged getting from the train station in Trieste to port— we had planned to walk it but it was raining too hard so we opted for the bus. For anyone else that does this, you’ll need to buy a bus ticket, either inside the train station or next door at the bus station next door $2.40€ for 2 people. Bus line 8 took us directly in front of the ship- had a bit of a scare when we got on and it seemed to go the opposite way but if you just stay on it, it’s only 2 stops the other way and then goes back to where you need to be. Dropped our luggage under the white tents and went inside. 

 

got through checkin pretty easily, had a 10am check in and was on the boat by 12. Less organized than other trips out of Seattle or Miami, but no big hassle. Our friends in the haven got through faster than we did despite not getting there til 11,and and drinks and snacks,  so if you are in the haven lucky you! 
 

went and selected our shows…icons are 2 nights beginning of the trip and beetlejuice is 2 nights towards the end. Picked our dining, upgraded the Wi-Fi… then went to find food at the buffet! They have wine on tap up there (cab and Chardonnay), have i mentioned yet that cruising is awesome 😂. 

rooms were ready by 2, and Omgosh they are awesome. So much storage and plug ins and everything was very pretty. Actual wall hooks built into the wall. 
 

layout of the ship is quirky, but honestly i dig it. My husband loves it too, it’s going to be fun figuring everything out! 
 

plan to take it easy the rest of the night, have a few drinks but we have an early excursion + jet lag so sleep will win at some point! 
 

And for those that have been wondering if there is Veuve Cliquot on board, (not a champagne drinker myself) snapped this pic outside of the Hudson restaurant I think. They do have it!

We disembarked that day in Trieste and walked from ship to the train station.  Was pretty wet by the time we reached the train station.  The line for a taxi was long so we just walked.  A little frustrating with two pieces of luggage in tow each, but we made it.  The Viva was fantastic!  So much to love about that ship!  The rooms are gorgeous and the bathrooms are so roomy.  The food was great!  We steered clear of the buffet for the most part.  It was pretty small.  There was so much other great food on the ship though.

[Coffeeluvr05]

On 10/19/2023 at 2:04 PM, Lvbhappy said:

Okay! Had a great rest of the night. 
 

Tried out the indulge food hall—what a cool idea. Have about 6-7 restaurants with sampling of what I assume is their best selling items, let people choose and bring it to the table. And you can order some drinks—set known cocktails/drinks or beer. 

Went up to the pool deck level after, sail away party was cancelled, my bet is because of the wind and rain. Underneath the ceiling though, beautiful spot to watch the sail away. Walked down to syd Norman’s, rocking shoe going on. People standing listening all the way out the door. 
 

we went to the metropolitan bar—good singer and good cocktails, enjoyed the rest of our night there. Early excursion tomorrow so didn’t kill it tonight. Asked the casino when they’d be open and they said about 1130. 
 

we did splurge on the premium plus package so you may get my unfiltered view of a bunch of the whiskey my hubs tries and I try that are fancy😂. 

The pad Thai in the Indulge Food Hall is great!  So is the Chicken Tikka Masala.  Those deviled eggs are really good too.  Oh, and don't forget to try the Totopos (nachos) in the Indulge Food Hall.  They are the best!

[Coffeeluvr05]

3 hours ago, SullytheBFG said:

One last question do you need to do a physical muster now? I.e go to a particular place?

 

when I checked in online we had to watch a video each, is that it?

 

 

No muster drill.  You do have to go check in at your muster station when you get on board and they just scan your cruise card.  We got that out of the way as soon as we boarded so we could get on with our day.

[boxman52]

Istanbul is one of the finest cities in the world to visit

Turkey as a whole has some superb places

Food is brilliant (and bar scene), people are very friendly and transport easy and modern.

There are an endless number of very reasonable priced tours you can book on a number of well known sites and reviews can be checked. Istanbul has some of the world's most iconic sites.

Thought for balance this would be useful to post

 

[Lvbhappy]

7 hours ago, boxman52 said:

Istanbul is one of the finest cities in the world to visit

Turkey as a whole has some superb places

Food is brilliant (and bar scene), people are very friendly and transport easy and modern.

There are an endless number of very reasonable priced tours you can book on a number of well known sites and reviews can be checked. Istanbul has some of the world's most iconic sites.

Thought for balance this would be useful to post

 

And I appreciate this! My brother in law travels extensively and had talked up Istanbul, similarly to you. Hopefully our experience is just a one off, and not typical.  

[Lvbhappy]

Le bistro and beetlejuice!

 

le bistro was amazing. Very high quality, service was amazing. Ysmeal the waiter was excellent, went above and beyond to take care of us. This is the only place to get that champagne everyone seems to love—by the glass. Veuve clicquot. 
 

after dinner waited around for a bit then got in line for beetlejuice! Theater is good, really don’t think there are bad seats in there. Show was very fun. I hadn’t actually seen the movie, so this was all new to me. Everyone enjoyed it thoroughly. A couple of the actors are in both icons and beetlejuice, so you’ll see them again. I though the lighting and background was well done for being on a ship. Actors/singers did an excellent job. Worth going to for sure! It doesn’t win my favorite show of all time though—that award is still held by Choir of Man on the encore. 

[Lvbhappy]

Daily!

[Lvbhappy]

Mykonos was beautiful. Thankful I am latitudes gold, and priority tender. This port was listed as dock but changed to a tender, not sure why. 
 

boats seemed limited, and we got in line at 1, were seated in the theater for priority tendering at 115, and we did not leave the shop until after 2. The people next to us tracked the breakaway, and said it was scheduled to leave at 3, and theorized that perhaps we were splitting the tender boats with them, for the people coming back and needing to be on board and us trying to get off. It was slow going but once we made it, very worth it and beautiful. I feel bad for those whose tender numbers weren’t until 30+. 
 

Can easily walk to little Venice and the church and windmills, gorgeous day in the 70s. Shop people were nice, restaurant was yummy, views were amazing. You CAN swim at the little beach there so if that’s your jam, do it!
 

made it back on board just before sunset which we saw in the Obs lounge. Sad our cruise is ending but miss home, the pups, and our families. Cheers to the last night! 

[bluefish17]

Thanks so much for doing this! It has been very helpful as we are getting on the ship in Rome Nov.6.

One last set of questions. Do people dress up much at night or is it a mix? How many dressy nights on a 9-10 night cruise. Also is the mix of passengers mostly American or mostly European?

 

Thanks again. Enjoy your last night!

[cruiseny4life]

Wow, that sunset is sublime! 

[ColdCruise]

Thanks for the Cruise report and wonderful photos @Lvbhappy unfortunately your food photos are making my stomach complain … and it’s midnight here 😂

I’m looking forward to our Nov 16th cruise and your just sharpening my anticipation!

 

I appreciate the Freestyles - useful for general  planning!

Safe travels !

[Alatraveler1]

On 10/27/2023 at 12:50 PM, Lvbhappy said:

Mykonos was beautiful. Thankful I am latitudes gold, and priority tender. This port was listed as dock but changed to a tender, not sure why. 
 

boats seemed limited, and we got in line at 1, were seated in the theater for priority tendering at 115, and we did not leave the shop until after 2. The people next to us tracked the breakaway, and said it was scheduled to leave at 3, and theorized that perhaps we were splitting the tender boats with them, for the people coming back and needing to be on board and us trying to get off. It was slow going but once we made it, very worth it and beautiful. I feel bad for those whose tender numbers weren’t until 30+. 
 

 

I wonder why you tendered as well?  Were other ships docked?  Were both locations taken?  If not, what was the reason?  Very irritation when you book a voyage based in part on low numbers of tender ports and then you can't walk off when you actually arrive but have to take the boats.  As you said it can really reduce your time ashore if you don't have priority or get a low number.